Starfox Adventures: After the Adventure
by Kxo Krazoa 6
Summary: Starfox has saved Dinosaur Planet! He's back on the Great Fox doing the every day thing. Are his adventures over, or have they just begun? (Rated PG-13 for some mild violence) [RRs are appreciated!] {Part X is up!}
1. Author's Notes and Stuff

Part X is up! Enjoy and RR please!  
  
Part XI is coming... but it might take me a while to get it up. It's not that it's lengthy, but it's probably one of the most important chapters so I have to spend a lot of time on it and make sure everything is right.  
  
Part XI: Riddle of the Stones - Coming soon! 


	2. Part I: Another Day

Part I  
  
Another Day  
  
"Good morning Fox!" Slippy shouted. "Rise in shine! You will like what I made for breakfast."  
  
"Hi Slippy," Fox moaned, trying to get out of his bed. "How can you get up so early?"  
  
"What are you talking about? It's almost noon!" Fox looked at him half a sleep.  
  
"Oh, well then why are you making breakfast?"  
  
"I thought I'd switch things around a bit today. You know, just for some variety. It kinda gets boring doing the same thing every single day. And it's a beautiful day! We need a change." 'Beautiful day?' Fox thought. 'Space must be getting to you Slippy'. He walked over toward the large window on the left side of the bedrooms. He gazed out toward the blackness and emptiness of space. All he could see was an endless field of stars.  
  
"We haven't had a good exciting mission since that incident with Dinosaur Planet."  
  
"I know Fox," Slippy said. "We went through the same phase before we went to Dinosaur Planet. Something will come up soon I'm sure. Besides, Aren't you tired from your last mission? You did a lot of running around on that planet."  
  
"Tired!" Fox yelled. "That mission was six months ago! I've had plenty of time to rest and now I want to do something!" Slippy stared at him for a second, then slowly turned his head towards his breakfast. "I'm sorry Slippy, I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just I want to do something else besides patrol the same area day after day. I get angry when I'm cooped up in the same spot for a long period of time."  
  
"Fox, you had to wait eight years after the second defeat of Andross. I'm sure six months couldn't be getting on your nerves. And then you beat Andross for the third time! Aren't you tired of him? I mean . . . we still don't know if he is gone for good."  
  
"Yes, I was getting tired of Andross. But at least he gave me something to do."  
  
"Fox," Slippy said in an irritated voice. "Tell me, would you rather have nothing to do and everything be fine, or would you rather have millions of innocent lives at stake and something to do."  
  
"Well..." Fox took a while to answer. "I . . . I don't know. No I guess."  
  
"Fox, it wasn't a 'yes or no question'."  
  
"Well then I don't know. I guess I'd rather have the safety of others then something to do."  
  
"Good fox. I'm glad. Now eat your breakfast and tell me what you think." Fox picked up his eating utensils and dug in. He finished in a matter of seconds.  
  
"Wow!" Fox yelled. "That was fantastic Slippy."  
  
"Thanks Fox. I made it myself."  
  
"I thought ROB did all of the cooking around here." "Yeah, well he's kind of falling apart and he needs some repair. Don't want to find any bolts in your meals do you?" "Good point."  
  
Just then, the mechanical sliding doors leading to the other bedrooms opened up. Peppy walked forward.  
  
"Hey guys!" he said. "Anything happen while I was sleeping?"  
  
"Couldn't tell you," said Fox. "I just woke up a few minutes ago."  
  
"You didn't miss anything," replied Slippy.  
  
"How can you wake up so early Slippy?" Peppy asked.  
  
"I don't know why you guys consider that to be early. I just wake up an hour before you guys do. It's not that early." Peppy walked over to the counter.  
  
"And what may I ask is this?" Peppy said with a puzzled look.  
  
"Try it Peppy," said Fox. "I think you will like it."  
  
"OK." Peppy ate away, and he also finished extremely fast. "That was delicious! But I'm afraid I have to get cracking with those maps."  
  
"Maps of what?" Fox asked loudly. "What can you possibly still be mapping. Haven't you mapped the whole Lylat System already?"  
  
"Fox, do you realize how long it'll take to map the WHOLE Lylat System? It will be awhile before I finish."  
  
"Well, what happens when you do finish? Then what are you going to do?" He stared at Fox for a second.  
  
"Well, I haven't thought of that yet. But I don't plan to think of that until the time comes."  
  
"OK Peppy, whatever."  
  
"Say, hasn't Falco waken up yet?"  
  
"Nope," replied Fox. "And quite frankly, I hope he doesn't!"  
  
"What's wrong Fox? Are you guys having a fight or something?"  
  
"We aren't fighting or anything, but..." Fox lowered his voice. "It's just, from the day he asked to come back on the team, I knew I was going to have problems again. Don't you remember how I hesitated to let him join again. I thought it would be rude if I rejected him joining us right in front of him. You see . . . he's a jerk. There I said it. He's a jerk. He won't listen to me, and he has to do everything his way."  
  
"Well Fox," Peppy began. "That's just Falco's personality. Falco wouldn't be Falco if he acted some other way. Maybe you should try acting like him when you're with him. That's my opinion though. You don't have to."  
  
"Wouldn't acting like him mean I would be getting rid of my personality?"  
  
"That's a good point Fox. I'll just let you confront him however you want to."  
  
"Hey Fox," yelled Slippy. "Why don't you try confronting him while on a mission of some sort?"  
  
"Didn't we just get though discussing how there was nothing to do? I mean, how are we going to find a mission to do that?"  
  
"Easy Fox. I never said it had to be a real mission."  
  
"Ah . . . I see where your going with this now."  
  
"I will assign a mission for you two as soon as he wakes up!" 


	3. Part II: On a Fake Mission

Part II  
  
On a Fake Mission  
  
The mechanical doors to Falco's bed opened. Falco walked in with his eyes almost shut.  
  
"Falco!" Slippy shouted. "We were waiting for you."  
  
"What is it now Slippy," Falco murmured. "I can't help you right now, I'm still half asleep."  
  
"Well then I guess I can find someone else to go with Fox on the mission."  
  
"A mission!" Falco's eyes immediately opened wider then ever. "Well why didn't you say so! What's up?"  
  
"Well, I need you to look for some Fuel Cells on a nearby unknown planet."  
  
"Unknown planet?" Peppy asked, thinking there really was one.  
  
"Peppy!" Slippy murmured to Peppy.  
  
"Oh yeah, sorry."  
  
"So," Falco began. "When do we leave?"  
  
"Right now," Slippy replied. "You need to collect at least fifty Fuel Cell Units."  
  
"FIFTY!" Falco yelled. "That'll take forever!"  
  
"Well then try to get as many as possible. You have no time limit."  
  
"OK then let's get going!"  
  
Fox and Falco walked toward their Arwings. It seemed strange to see those two side by side once again.  
  
"Depositing Fuel Cell Units into Combustion Hatch," said ROB.  
  
"Let's see if you can still fly like you use to Fox!" yelled Falco before the Arwing windshields closed. Fox grunted and started the G-Diffuser System.  
  
"Everything's good to go!" yelled Slippy. Fox and Falco both took off, Falco zooming off in front of Fox barely crashing into him.  
  
"I hope those two get along," Slippy said to himself.  
  
A couple of hours later, Fox and Falco were still on their way to this 'Unknown Planet'. Fox had his Arwing on automatic pilot, but Falco had his on manual. He was flying around in circles, doing somersaults and barrel rolls.  
  
"Aren't you tired yet?" asked Fox. "You've been doing that for about an hour now. You're just gonna ware out your FCU's, and then we'll have to look for even more.  
  
"Well Fox," Falco started. "I would stop doing this if we were actually going to a planet to pick up FCU's." "What? What do you mean?"  
  
"I heard you guys talking in my bedroom. I just acted like I didn't suspect anything so we could come out here and talk."  
  
"Oh . . . well so much for that idea. You could've just told me you knew about this fake mission."  
  
"What's the fun in that?" Fox grunted again. "Besides, I totally agree with you."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I think your right Fox. I think I've been kinda acting like a jerk to you, and I wanted to apologize for acting like that. I mean, you guys let me come back on the team even after I left for so long. And I really appreciate that. I really should treat you guys with more respect."  
  
"But Peppy was talking to me this morning and he said."  
  
"That this is my personality," Falco interrupted. "I know Fox. This is my personality. But I could at least treat you guys nicer."  
  
"Well I'm glad we had this little talk Falco. I've been wanting to get that out of me for months."  
  
"Yeah, I'm sorry Fox. I'm sorry I waited so long to talk to you. I was kind of waiting for you to say something to me first."  
  
"I know. But it's hard for me to do that."  
  
"Well, now that that's out of the way let's talk about something else."  
  
"OK. Like what."  
  
"Well, how is what's-her-face doing?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"You know . . . that blue fox girl."  
  
"Oh, Krystal. How should I know?"  
  
"I thought you would keep in touch with her. She seemed to have eyes for you that one day."  
  
"That was the scariest moment of my life!"  
  
"Why Fox? You aren't afraid of girls are you?"  
  
"Well no . . . it's just, the way she looked at me when she came onto the ship. I could feel my body flowing with this energy that I've never felt before. She's amazing!"  
  
"Why don't you go visit her Fox?"  
  
"Do you think I should?"  
  
"Sure, why not? It couldn't hurt."  
  
"I think she's still on Dinosaur Planet. But I'm not sure."  
  
"Can't hurt to see."  
  
"Why are you so anxious to see her?"  
  
"I just wanted to meet her."  
  
"Just meet her huh?"  
  
"I swear Fox! I just want to meet her. She only has eyes for you. I will stay out of the way of your relationship with her."  
  
"OK then. We will go visit her."  
  
"Cool! Let's head there now."  
  
"Crap!" Fox picked up the communicator. "Slippy?"  
  
"Hi Fox," Slippy said though the communicator. "Is anything wrong?"  
  
"I need you to prepare the translator device for when I get back."  
  
"Translator? Why do you need a translator?"  
  
"Falco and I are going to go visit Krystal."  
  
"Oh, OK Fox . . . I will get the translator ready for you." It was easy to tell Slippy was smiling just from the tone of his voice.  
  
"Slippy out!" Fox put the communicator back down.  
  
"Fox," Falco started. "Why do you need a translator device?"  
  
"If you don't remember, Krystal speaks a different language."  
  
"I heard her speaking English on the ship."  
  
"That's because Slippy had a translator device running. Without it, I can't understand a word she says."  
  
"OK Fox. I'm switching to auto pilot since we have to fly all the way back now."  
  
"OK Falco, I'll wake you up when we get there." 


	4. Part III: A Visit With Krystal

Part III  
  
A Visit With Krystal  
  
"Fox!" Falco yelled.  
  
"Wha . . . What?" Fox replied trying to wake up.  
  
"My G-Diffuser System is beeping at me! It says I need more FCU's."  
  
"Falco, I told you you'd wear out your FCU's!"  
  
"What do I do?" Falco asked frantically. Fox looked around.  
  
"There!" He pointed. "See that planet? Land over there and I will be back with the Great Fox and you can re-supply."  
  
"OK Fox. Thanks." Fox increased his speed toward the Great Fox. He entered the planet's coordinates in his counsel. He figured he could ask Peppy what planet that is.  
  
About a half an hour later, Fox arrived at the great Fox. He flew into the opening hatch and quickly jumped out of the cockpit.  
  
"Hi Fox," Slippy greeted him. "What's your hurry? How come your back so soon?"  
  
"Falco's stuck on a planet!" he replied. "He wore out his FCU's by flying around so much that he had to land on a planet."  
  
"Do you know which planet he landed on?"  
  
"No, but I think Peppy might."  
  
"Might what?" Peppy asked hearing the commotion.  
  
"Peppy," Fox began. "Do you know what planet is here? The coordinates are 78393-288921-46230." Peppy punched the numbers into his computer.  
  
"Well Fox, it appears I haven't mapped there yet. My computer has no data on this location. This means I can make some new maps!"  
  
"I'm worried about Falco right now. ROB, set a course to these coordinates . . . 78393-288921-46230." ROB didn't move. "ROB?"  
  
"I'm afraid ROB's out of service right now," Slippy said. "He needs to be repaired, and I don't have the parts right now, so I can fly us over there."  
  
"Thanks Slippy."  
  
"No problem Fox. By the way, how did the talk go?"  
  
"Oh, uh . . . I'll tell ya later, now's not the time."  
  
"Hmm, all right Fox, whatever you say. Hey, what made you want to go visit Krystal?"  
  
"Oh, actually it was Falco's idea. I thought it was a good idea, so we had to come back here to pick up your translator device. Unfortunately, Falco wouldn't stop flying around, doing all of these fancy tricks. So as we were heading back, Falco realized that he had drained his G-Diffuser System. So now I have to go to that planet and save him."  
  
"Well Fox, why don't you go visit Krystal, and I go pick up Falco."  
  
"Are you sure? I mean, that just sounds mean to leave you with the job of going to fetch Falco while I go out and visit a friend."  
  
"Go ahead Fox. I got nothing better to do anyways."  
  
"OK Slippy, thank you."  
  
"Don't worry about it. Oh and don't forget the translator device!"  
  
Fox hopped back into his Arwing and set a course for Dinosaur Planet. Maybe I can visit Tricky while I'm there Fox thought. This seems so wrong to leave Falco stuck on that planet, when I just go visit my friends anyway. Especially since he's the one who thought of this in the first place. But it's his fault he's stuck there in the first place so I guess he will understand why I went without him. Besides, when he's done re-supplying he can fly over here and say hi to everybody. Fox got his thoughts straight and continued to Dinosaur Planet.  
  
A few hours later, Fox was nearing Dinosaur Planet. He thought the best place to look first was Thorntail Hollow. He landed nicely in the usual spot. Fox walked over toward a few Thorntails. The Thorntails looked up at him.  
  
"Ak'j xam!" one of them roared. "Ak'j houcco xam!"  
  
"Time to use the translator," Fox said. He pushed some buttons on his wrist pad.  
  
"I can't believe it's really you Fox!"  
  
"Um . . . hi," Fox said. "I don't think I recall your name, you all look alike."  
  
"What brings you back to our planet Fox?"  
  
"Well, I was looking for Krystal. Do you have any idea where she might be?"  
  
"Sorry, can't help you. Try talking to the Queen Earthwalker. She might be able to help."  
  
"OK, thanks." Fox contacted Peppy.  
  
"Peppy?" he said. "Peppy do you read me?"  
  
"Loud and clear," he responded. "What's up Fox?"  
  
"I need a world map."  
  
"Now doesn't this sound familiar Fox?" He laughed. "OK, I'm sending you a map now." Fox's P.D.A. flashed, and the world map displayed.  
  
"Thanks Peppy, I'll contact you if I get lost."  
  
"All right Fox. Take care. Peppy out." I could fly there Fox thought, but I need to save my FCU's for later.  
  
"OK," he said to himself. "Let's see . . . I need to take a left here. Then I need to go straight through here." He went though the directions to himself, and then started walking. "Now I know that the Queen is at that temple thing. So I should take a right here. Argh! This was a lot easier when the planet was in pieces!"  
  
He eventually made his way to the Walled City Temple on foot. He walked toward the temple passing by many Earthwalkers. Every Earthwalker he passed by would bow down to him. He went up to the entrance of the temple, and saw four Earthwalkers. Two of them looked like they were on guard. The two in the middle looked like the King and Queen. The King looked like he was asleep. Fox went up toward them.  
  
"Fox!" the Queen yelled. "Is it really you? It's been so long since we last saw each other."  
  
"Yeah, I know. I had a question."  
  
"Anything Fox. What is it?"  
  
"Do you know who Krystal is?"  
  
"Why yes, she told us about you saving her."  
  
"Do you know where she went?"  
  
"I think she said she was going to go to Cape Claw and settle there for awhile. She said something about how the shore made her feel comfortable. I don't know if she is still there though."  
  
"Thanks. I'll head there right away." Fox started to walk back where he came from, then stopped and turned around. "Oh, but before I forget, where's Tricky?"  
  
"Oh he's running around here somewhere. Hold on, I'll call him over." The Queen Earthwalker let out a big roar of a weird sound. Nothing happened.  
  
"Just give him a second. He's probably at the river on the other side of the temple." Fox looked at the King lying there.  
  
"How is the King doing?"  
  
"Oh he's not so well. He's been sleeping all morning. I'm afraid he's ill with something. The Grubtub Fungus doesn't seem to be working."  
  
"Oh, that's too bad. I hope he gets better."  
  
"I'm sure he will get better by tonight. It can't be too serious."  
  
"Well I should get going."  
  
"Wait! Don't you want to see Tricky?"  
  
"Oh yeah . . . sorry, almost forgot." A few seconds past, then Fox could see a tiny figure running toward them. He could here the words 'Fox' being yelled out from Tricky. Tricky looked excited to see Fox.  
  
"Fox! Fox! You came back!" Tricky yelled as he approached Fox.  
  
"Hi Tricky! Long time no see."  
  
"I missed you Fox! There's been nothing to do around here since you've been gone, and it only gets worse. My dad is sick, and it looks real bad. My mom already tried some Grubtub Mushrooms, but those didn't even work."  
  
"I heard about your dad. Is there anything I can do?"  
  
"Well, I can't think of anything else that will help my dad."  
  
"I guess all we can do is wait, and hope he gets better."  
  
"Oh I hate waiting for something to happen!"  
  
"So do I Tricky, but sometimes you have to. I'm sorry I can't help. Anyways I'm on my way to visit Krystal."  
  
"You mean that blue fox? She told us that you saved her. Where is she?"  
  
"Well your mom thinks she might of gone to Cape Claw, so that's where I'm heading now."  
  
"Fox, can I go with? Please!"  
  
"You really should stay with your dad. He needs you to keep him company."  
  
"He hasn't waken up all morning. I can't do anything else Fox, except maybe help you."  
  
"Oh I hate putting you in danger Tricky!"  
  
"Fox, if I can handle what we did last time, I can surely handle visiting a friend!" Fox hesitated for a second.  
  
"OK Tricky, you can come."  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"But only if it's alright with your mother."  
  
"It's fine with me," she said.  
  
"Yeah!" Tricky yelled again. "Let's get going Fox! Where's your spaceship?"  
  
"I don't have it this time Tricky. We have to go on foot."  
  
"Oh, OK. I really want to meet this Krystal girl."  
  
"Well then we better hurry. I want to get back and see how your dad is doing." 


	5. Part IV: To Cape Claw

Part IV  
  
To Cape Claw  
  
"OK Tricky," Fox said. "We're here!" Fox and Tricky walked out toward the shore. "There's that big dinosaur that I helped get back his gold."  
  
"Man Fox, you've just saved everybody around here haven't you." Fox laughed.  
  
"Yeah, I seem to be really popular on this planet." Just then, a spear flew out of a nearby tree.  
  
"Woah!" Fox yelled as he jumped back. A few lizard like figures jumped out of the tree and approached Fox. "I don't have a staff this time Tricky!"  
  
"Then what do we do?" He reached towards his belt.  
  
"Use my blaster!" He felt around his belt. "What? Where is it? I don't have it!"  
  
"Now what do we do?"  
  
"Uh..." Fox looked around. "Just give me a second." Suddenly, a blue blur shot from behind the tree. A large flash surrounded the lizards. Immediately after, the lizards dropped to the ground. The blue blur came to a stop.  
  
"Krystal!" Fox shouted.  
  
"Fox!" she shouted back. "Your back! How did you know I was here?"  
  
"The Queen Earthwalker told me you'd probably be here. Anyway, thanks for saving us."  
  
"Us?"  
  
"Yeah me and, uh..." he looked around for Tricky. "Tricky?" Fox looked around and saw Tricky chasing one of those lizard things away. "Oh well, he'll come back. So..." Fox gulped. "How's things been going with you?"  
  
"Not bad. What brings you here?"  
  
"Well I was going to come here with my friend Falco, but he got himself stuck."  
  
"Why did you guys want to come and visit me?"  
  
"Uh . . . Well, I just missed you I guess." She looked at him with the same look when he saved her. Fox couldn't move.  
  
"Fox," she began. "That's very sweet of you. I didn't know you missed me."  
  
"Yeah, well it was, uh, Falco's idea . . . I just agreed with, uh, him..."  
  
"Oh so it was Falco who missed me?" She started to smile.  
  
"Well that's not, uh, what I meant . . . well, I mean, uh..."  
  
"I'm back Fox!" yelled Tricky. "Sorry, had to go get rid of one of those . . . uh, Fox?" Tricky looked at Fox. Tricky couldn't make out a word he was saying.  
  
"Don't worry about it Fox," Krystal said. "I understand. But who is this Falco character?"  
  
"Oh he's just a friend of mine," Fox replied without studdering.  
  
"So why isn't he here? Something about being stuck was it?"  
  
"Yeah, he drained his Arwing of all its energy and my other friends are on their way to rescue him now."  
  
"Arwing?"  
  
"It's a big flying contraption used to get places fast. Great for air combat."  
  
"I think your talking about that thing you used to defeat the Krazoa right?"  
  
"That's right, but that thing wasn't a Krazoa. It was actually Andross using the power of the Krazoa spirits to resurrect himself. But he's gone for good . . . I hope. But I'd rather not talk about him right now. Hearing his name just makes me angry. Besides, Tricky's dad, the King Earthwalker, is sick, and I want to find something to make him better."  
  
"I know of an ancient healing stone hidden in Moon Mountain Pass," said Krystal.  
  
"Oh no, I hate that place! I get lost too easily."  
  
"I can guide you to it Fox. But I need my staff this time OK?"  
  
"OK, it's your staff."  
  
"Where are we going?" yelled Tricky.  
  
"We need to go to Moon Mountain Pass Tricky," replied Fox.  
  
"Oh no! Not that old place again!"  
  
"I know how you feel Tricky, but we have to try to save your dad."  
  
"Oh OK," Tricky moaned. Fox picked up a stick off the ground.  
  
"Well, it's better than nothing!" he said. 


	6. Part V: The Unexpected

Part V  
  
The Unexpected  
  
"I want to thank you for coming with us to find this stone," said Fox.  
  
"It's a pleasure to be able to fight with you," she replied. "Instead of me being stuck in that crystal thing."  
  
"What was it like stuck in that crystal?"  
  
"Well it wasn't fun. I was supposed to be the one who released the Krazoa Spirits, but then that evil Andross trapped me inside of the crystal. I want to thank you once again for saving me Fox. I figured helping you find this stone was a way to repay you."  
  
"Well thank you Krystal. You know if it wasn't for you the King Earthwalker would've..." his communicator started beeping. "Fox here."  
  
"Fox!" he heard Slippy's voice. "Fox we are under attack and we need assistance ASAP!"  
  
"Oh great," Fox moaned. "Now I have to head back to my Arwing and fly ALL the way back to the Great Fox!"  
  
"What's going on?" asked Krystal.  
  
"Sorry, but I have to get back to my ship so I can help my friends. You can come with me to my ship if you want to."  
  
"Sure Fox. At least we'll get to talk for awhile more."  
  
When Fox, Krystal and Tricky got to Thorntail Hollow, they saw the unexpected.  
  
"Oh no!" yelled Fox. "It can't get any worse!" Fox's Arwing was trashed. It had been pushed over, stepped on, bashed against and tossed around. It was definitely damaged enough to where it couldn't fly. Fox hit buttons on his wrist pad. The Arwings windshield began to open, then just fell off completely. He went inside the cockpit and activated the counsel. It displayed the damage done to the Arwing. It said there was damage to every area except the bottom storage compartment. "This is going to cost me a fortune!!!" Fox yelled at the top of his lungs. "Who did this?! I demand you show yourself!" Nothing happened. Fox took out his communicator. "Slippy. Come in Slippy. Hello?" There was no answer. "Curse my craving for something to do!"  
  
"What are you going to do now Fox?" Krystal asked. Fox fell on his knees and took a deep breath.  
  
"All we can do now is keep going to Moon Mountain Pass and look for this stone you were talking about."  
  
"Good idea Fox. We should get going."  
  
"This is unbelievable! First I get in a fight with Falco, then he gets himself stuck, then Tricky's dad gets sick, then the Great Fox is under attack, then my ship gets trashed, and now I'm walking around with a STICK in my hand for a weapon!!!"  
  
"Well we better get moving Fox, because whatever messed up your ship had to be real big." Fox took a moment to regain control of himself.  
  
"Your right," he said. "We better start moving. Do you know the way? I can't get Peppy's maps anymore cause my team won't respond to the communicator."  
  
"I know the way Fox!" yelled Tricky. "Come on! Follow me!" He ran ahead sniffing around everything he passed. Fox looked at his hands.  
  
"I don't think I've ever been this angry before," he said.  
  
"I know how you feel Fox," said Krystal. "I was furious when I lost my home planet."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess you have it worse than me, so I shouldn't be the one complaining."  
  
"Anger is anger Fox. Big or small it usually finds it's way to release itself from your body. The affects can be unnoticeable or they can be devastating. It's up to you how you release that anger. Many have not tried canceling out their anger by doing something they like when they're angry. What is something you like to do Fox?"  
  
"Well . . . I like to talk to you. That makes me feel good inside."  
  
"That's sweet Fox. But what did you use to do before you met me?" He looked down at the ground.  
  
"I used to just hold it inside me and wait until it went away. What did you do Krystal?"  
  
"Me? Well I would go to the shore and stare out into the water. The sound of the waves would make me feel comfortable."  
  
Fox and Krystal continued to talk as they walked toward Moon Mountain Pass. An hour passed of straight walking until they came to an area with many trees.  
  
"Where are we?" Krystal asked.  
  
"I think we are near the Lightfoot Village," Fox replied. "We need to walk straight through this place until we reach the end." Fox looked around. "Krystal?" She was nowhere in sight. "Krystal? Krystal!" Just then, An arm shot out of the bushes and pulled him in. Fox struggled to break free, but then saw it was Krystal who pulled him in. "What are you doing?"  
  
"Look over there," she whispered. She pointed to two Lightfoots on guard.  
  
"Yeah, those are Lightfoots. I'm known well in their tribe." Fox got out from the bushes and walked toward the Lightfoots.  
  
"Fox!" Krystal yelled quietly. "What are you doing?! Come back!" Fox continued toward the Lightfoots. The two Lightfoots jumped back and put up their spears.  
  
"Who are you?!" one of them said.  
  
"Why, I am Fox McCloud."  
  
"Well get lost!"  
  
"That's no way to speak to the honorary member of the Lightfoot Tribe," he said calmly.  
  
"What you talking about? You are not the honorary member!"  
  
"Perhaps I should discuss this with your leader?"  
  
"Fine." He pointed to the other Lightfoot. "You watch him and make sure he don't go nowhere!" He ran off toward one of the huts. He quickly returned with the leader.  
  
"Ah!" the leader began. "It's Fox McCloud! Where you been for this long time aeh?" The other Lightfoots put down their guards.  
  
"Oh you know, the usual."  
  
"That's very nice, but you have to die now."  
  
"Uh . . . excuse me?"  
  
"Guards, capture him!" The Lightfoots rushed toward him. He swung his stick at them but it broke as it clashed with one of their spears. He dodged most of their attacks. Suddenly more and more came from the huts. Fox was surrounded.  
  
"Hey! What ever happened to honorary member of the Lightfoot Tribe?"  
  
"You are no longer the honorary member of our tribe. Do you think you would keep the title for this long? Someone else has beaten your record, and his request was for us to get rid of you if we ever saw you again."  
  
"Who beat my record?!"  
  
"I can't tell you that Fox. He specifically told us that you were his nemesis, so your membership with the tribe is history, and so are YOU!" One of the guards looked at the leader. The leader nodded his head. A Lightfoot from behind thrust his spear right into Fox.  
  
"AHHHH!!!" Fox yelled as the spear pierced through his skin and into his back. A loud 'NO!!!' came from the bushes.  
  
"What was that?!" the leader shouted. "Go check out those bushes!" Several Lightfoots ran opposite of Fox's lifeless body.  
  
"Tricky," Krystal said still behind the bushes. "I want you to go get some help." Tricky ran off without saying a word. The Lightfoots continued toward the bushes. They slowed down as they neared the bushes. As they were only inches away from the bushes, Krystal's staff shot out and smacked one of the Lightfoots in the leg. Immediately after, she swung the staff upward and clashed the jaw of another Lightfoot. The two dropped to the ground, revealing dozens behind them. They rushed toward Krystal.  
  
"THIS IS FOR FOX!" she yelled as she charged the big group of Lightfoots.  
  
"Kill the blue Fox!" the leader yelled. Krystal rushed toward the leader first, yelling as she approached him. Four guards leaped in front of her. She charged up her staff and slammed it against the ground. The four fell to the ground; the leader regained his balance. Six more Lightfoots charged from every direction. She rapidly spun her staff around shielding herself from any attacks the Lightfoots threw at her. She continued to run towards the leader. Three jumped in front of her, eight from behind, five from the right, and four from the left. She started to charge up her staff, but before she could finish, a Lightfoot grabbed the staff and threw it to the leader. The Lightfoots surrounding her closed in and tackled her. Every Lightfoot was seconds away from joining in and brutally beating her with the dull end of their spears. The leader singled for them to stop.  
  
"No," he started. "I have better plans for you."  
  
"You lay a finger on me and I'll..." but before she could finish, she was smacked across the back of her head with the butt end of a spear. She slowly fell to the ground. She wasn't moving. Everything went totally black. 


	7. Part VI: Escape from Lightfoot Village

Part VI  
  
Escape from Lightfoot Village  
  
"Wha, where am I. I'm I dead?" Everything was a blur. "What happened?" Krystal said to herself. Her eyes slowly focused into her surroundings. "What is this place?" She looked around. It was dark, almost pitch black, and foggy. It looked as if she was in a small cave. She started to get up but was immediately pulled back down by her wrists. "What the," she started. "I'm chained to the wall!" Her wrists were locked in large metal bands connected to a chain attached to the wall behind her. She looked to her left and saw something sitting against the wall. "Hello?" The figure very slowly tilted its head upward.  
  
"Who is that?" the figure asked.  
  
"My name is Krystal. Who are you?"  
  
"Well everybody use to call me Musclefoot, but I have no idea what they call me now." The creature talked slowly as if been put through tremendous torture.  
  
"How long have you been here?"  
  
"It's been too long to tell."  
  
"Why are you-" she was interrupted by the sounds of moaning. She looked toward her left and saw a figure in the shadows.  
  
"Aaaahh," came noises from the figure. "Ohhh. my back! Where am I?"  
  
"Who is that?" asked Krystal. Musclefoot concentrated on the figure at Krystal's left too.  
  
"No," it started, "it can't be! Is that Fox McCloud?!" The creature was talking at a much faster and louder rate.  
  
"Yeah I'm Fox," he replied. "Aww ohh, my aching back! Stupid Lightfoots don't know how to-"  
  
"YOU ARE THE REASON I'M DOWN HERE!" Musclefoot shouted.  
  
"What? What are you talking about? I have nothing to do with you! Who are you anyways?"  
  
"It's me Fox, the one you humiliated in front of the ENTIRE CLAN!!" He tried to get up, but was also chained to the wall by his wrists. He let out an enormous yell and fell back down against the wall.  
  
"Musclefoot?" Fox said. "Is that Musclefoot?" Fox had a worried look on his face.  
  
"Oh, it's not your fault I'm down here. it's my fault for not leaving when I had the chance."  
  
"Leave? But why? You are part of the Lightfoot Tribe."  
  
"Yes, I know. But they wanted me to leave after you beat my records. They said I was a failure, and failures don't belong in the clan."  
  
"And I suppose all of them could beat your record!" Fox said in a sarcastic voice.  
  
"You're right, it was a stupid reason."  
  
"Yeah, they shouldn't throw you in prison because of a stupid record."  
  
"That's not why they threw me in prison. They threw me in prison because I kept begging for a second chance. They finally gave me one..." he paused for a moment.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"And I failed again!"  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry."  
  
"Please Fox, don't make me think it was your fault. It wasn't your fault."  
  
"Hey, I heard Krystal's voice a minute ago."  
  
"Yeah I'm here Fox," she said. "Don't worry I almost got it!"  
  
"Got what?" Fox asked her. She didn't answer. "Almost got what?" Just then, Krystal jerked her hand back and freed herself of the metal band on her right wrist. "What just happened? It's too dark I can't see a thing!" Krystal freed her other wrist a couple of seconds later. She walked over to Fox and grabbed his right wrist and the metal band on it. She tried to jerk it free.  
  
"It. wont. budge!" She stopped trying. "I'm sorry Fox, but you'll have to stay here until I can find a key of some sort. Your hand is too big to go through the rings."  
  
"Okay, but please hurry. I think my back is bleeding but I can't tell."  
  
"Which way do I go?" she asked Musclefoot.  
  
"To my right," he replied. Krystal rushed off to the path at Musclefoot's right. She started at a running pace, but within a couple of minutes of going though a slightly curved narrow path, she slowed to a walk. It seemed to never end.  
  
"How long is this tunnel?" she asked herself. She continued for what seemed to be more than thirty minutes. She saw a larger opening ahead of her. "Finally," she said. She walked out into the large cave. She looked down and noticed a dark figure against the wall.  
  
"Krystal?" the figure began. "Did you find a key?"  
  
"Fox?" she said. "But I-"  
  
"Went in a big circle," Musclefoot said. "I apologize. I forgot how big these caverns are. I'd draw you a map if I could, but your gonna have to memorize the way." Musclefoot explained, as best as he could, the way out of the caverns. "The Lightfoots made these caves this way to make sure that if a prisoner escaped he would die of starvation before he could find a way out."  
  
"So I take it this will take a while by walking," Krystal assumed.  
  
"Please, don't go to fast . . . but not too slow, for the Lightfoots come down to check the prisoners often. Once they know you're gone, they'll probably torture us until we tell them where you are."  
  
"Wait a minute . . . they'll what?" asked Fox with a worried look.  
  
"Okay then, I'll hurry," Krystal finished. With that, she rushed off to the right exit again. She tried her hardest to remember Musclefoot's directions. She turned left, right, left, straight, right, right, up a flight of stairs, right, left . . . she couldn't remember the rest. She guessed the rest of the way. A short time later, she ended up back at the same flight of stairs she went up. She went around in circles several times. She had an idea. She undid her crown and separated the beads. She picked a direction, but before she went through she left one bead at the start of the tunnel. She thought that if she ran into a tunnel with a bead already there, that meant she was going in circles. She knelt down to place a bead, but she accidentally dropped it instead. It fell on its side. and began to roll! She followed it and it went through many passages until it hit a dead end. "I've got it!" she yelled. The yell echoed through the caves for a few seconds. "If, when I roll the bead on it's side, it falls flat then I should go that way. If it keeps rolling then I should go the opposite way!"  
  
She backtracked as far as she could remember from following the bead. When she wasn't sure which way to go, she put down the bead on it's side, gave it a good roll, and watched it fall flat. She was going the right way! She soon reached the flight of stairs she was at before. She picked a direction and rolled the bead. It rolled in, so she picked another, then another until she found one where the bead fell flat. "This must be the way," she said. She did the same thing every time she ran into a fork. After a while, she noticed the air smelled fresher. "I must be close," she said to herself. She continued down what seemed a never-ending tunnel until she heard voices. She stopped and listened.  
  
"Stupid blue fox hurt some of ours!" the voice said.  
  
"I go check on prisoners. I think I give the blue fox a hard time when I get there," said the voice of another, followed by a cruel chuckle. They were obviously Lightfoots.  
  
"I come with! I don't want to miss this."  
  
"Oh no!" Krystal said. "If I don't hurry, they'll know that I'm gone. And then what will happen to Fox?!" She thought to herself for a moment. "I'll never get help in time!" She put all her beads back onto her crown then disconnected the small red crystal from the crown. "There's only one thing to do."  
  
"I'm gonna stab her in the feet!"  
  
"I'm gonna pick her up by her hair!"  
  
"Well, I'm gonna-" he was interrupted with Krystal's foot in his eye. The Lightfoot she kicked went flying into the cave wall, quickly falling to the ground. The other Lightfoot looked at his partner for a moment then looked back at Krystal. He readied his spear. Krystal stood still looking carefully at the Lightfoot. Suddenly the Lightfoot sprang forward, spear first, and gave out a loud yell. Krystal waited until his spear was only a foot away from her then jumped into the air. She flipped upside-down and used one hand to balance herself on the spear, while the other hand slapped the back of the Lightfoot's neck. She landed perfectly on her feet. The Lightfoot stood there for a couple of seconds, made some weird noises. then just collapsed. Krystal knelt down beside the Lightfoot and felt around the back of his neck. Then, she gripped a small object sticking out from his neck and pulled back. Slowly, out came her small red crystal from his neck, followed by a large amount of blood. She wiped it off with her cloth then reattached it to her crown.  
  
"That should buy me a little more time," she said. She continued down the tunnel for a moment, but suddenly turned around and ran back to where the Lightfoots were. She grabbed the spear from the Lightfoot she kicked earlier. then used it on him. "Just in case," she said. She took the spear with her for a weapon incase she ran into any more trouble.  
  
Not long afterwards, the cave was getting brighter and brighter.  
  
"I'm so close!" she said. Soon she reached the caves entrance. She peeked around the corner of the entrance to check for any Lightfoots. There were none. She leaped out into the open and inhaled as much fresh air she could. "Ah! It smells so nice!" she said. She breathed the fresh air for a minute then sat down. The only thing she was thinking about was how she was going to get Fox and the other Lightfoot out of the caves. She had no idea where a key could be, and she had no idea who to go get for help. She sat for a while. thinking. hoping that Fox and Musclefoot would get out of this alive. 


	8. Part VII: Hope

Part VII  
  
Hope  
  
Krystal stood there for a while and thought of what to do. She knew she had to be fast.  
  
"It won't be long before they discover their guards are missing," she said to herself. "But where in the world am I supposed to get help? . . ." She hopped off the small ledge she was sitting on. "What if I wonder off to far? Then I won't be able to find my way back here!" She only walked a few steps before she sat down again and thought to herself. "Come on . . . think!" There was a long moment of silence. The sun was drifting away with the blood red skies surrounding the village. A thought passed through Krystal's head for only a moment. A thought of the Lightfoots going into the caves with weapons in their hands. A thought of them discovering Fox and Musclefoot without her. A thought of-"No! Don't think that," she yelled to herself. "I can't give up hope. I've got to think of a way to help them. I don't have enough time to go get help . . . I have to do this on my own."  
  
"Ahhh . . . my back is killing me!" said Fox.  
  
"What happened?" said Musclefoot slowly.  
  
"A stupid Lightfoot stabbed me in the back. Good thing he didn't go in too deep."  
  
"Why did they attack you?" he asked even slower.  
  
"Cause . . . some guy came and beat my records and ordered to have me killed... well I guess he really wanted me captured instead . . . are you okay?"  
  
"Yes I'm fine . . . who?"  
  
"I don't know they wouldn't tell me. Whoever it was, it was probably the same guy who messed up my ship."  
  
"He or she must... have some score to settle... with you."  
  
"I'm pretty sure it's a he; I've tried my hardest not to make enemies with any women . . . those are the worst kind!" Fox waited for a laugh from Musclefoot. Nothing happened. "Yeah, I guess this isn't the best time or place to be making jokes. What do you plan to do with the rest of your life when we get out of here?" There was no answer. "I know it seems hopeless, but I'm sure Krystal will find us a way out of here." There was still no answer. "Hello? Musclefoot?" Fox could only see a shadowy figure of the Lightfoot sitting up against the wall. He searched for a rock with his shoes. When he found one, he kicked it over to Musclefoot and hit him. There was a long pause. "Come on Musclefoot! Answer me!" Fox yelled and yelled, but there was no response. "You still have your whole life ahead of you; you can't die right here in these old caves!" Still nothing. Fox stopped yelling. He sat back against the wall and tried not to lose hope for himself.  
  
Krystal wondered around the village looking for something that could help get Fox and Musclefoot out of the caves. It got harder and harder to see because of nightfall. The torches that were placed all around the village aided her. She noticed a great number of torches lit across the lake. It was a large hut. She went towards it as quietly as possible to avoid being spotted by any Lightfoots on guard. When she got to the hut, she got up against the wall and listened. She could hear many Lightfoots inside and what sounded like the Lightfoot leader that ordered the others to attack her earlier that day (at least she thought it was the same day she was attacked. She didn't know how long she'd been out for in the caves). She listened to them speak.  
  
"I am very displeased at how many of ours it took to take down the blue fox," the leader said.  
  
"It would have been much easier if she didn't have this!" another Lightfoot said as he held up Krystal's staff.  
  
"My staff!" Krystal accidentally yelled out. None of the Lightfoots heard her; they were all talking too loudly. The Lightfoot holding her staff put it on the table towards the back of the hut. Krystal had an idea. She went to the back of the hut on the outside. She reached her hand in one of the many holes in the hut. The staff was lying there only a few inches from the Lightfoot in front of it. Krystal grabbed the back of the staff, causing it to extend outward stabbing the Lightfoot in the leg. Krystal quickly jerked the staff backwards in attempt to get the staff through the small opening. She quickly got it through then ran back towards the cave entrance. She was much too fast for the Lightfoots. They disappeared into the darkness as Krystal approached the cave. She unattached one of the beads from her crown, set it down at the entrance, and rolled it forward. She watched as it began to roll forward into the caves. She followed it as it turned left and right and fell down the flight of stairs. It rolled and rolled until it ran into a dark figure. She reattached her bead and starred at the figure. She could tell it was Fox, but he wasn't moving. "Fox?" she said. She knelt down and touched him.  
  
"AHHHH!!" he yelled.  
  
"It's okay, it's me!"  
  
"Ah, thank goodness! Did you find a key?"  
  
"No, hold up your wrists."  
  
"No?" he said as he held up his wrists. "Then how are you planning to get me out of here.  
  
"Just hold completely still." She brought that rounded end of her staff to his left band. The end of the staff began to glow bright red, followed by the whole room. The staff shot out a large amount of energy on the enormously thick yet tight band.  
  
"AHH!! THAT'S HOT!" yelled Fox felling some of the heat from the blast. The left band melted in two. Fox quickly pulled his hand to his mouth and began to blow on it.  
  
"I have to do the other hand." She put the staff to the other band. Fox closed his eyes. Before she shot the band, they could hear noises coming from a distance in the caves. "They must of known I'd return to the caves!" She shot the blast of energy and melted the other band. This practically drained the staff of its energy. The noises were getting louder. She helped Fox up then immediately went towards Musclefoot. "My staff doesn't have enough energy! How are we going to get Musclefoot out?"  
  
"Just forget it!" Fox said.  
  
"Fox! How could we just leave-"  
  
"He's dead!" he yelled with a crooked voice. "Now come on. We can lose them in these caves." Krystal stood there for a moment then looked at Musclefoot's lifeless body. "It's not your fault! There's nothing you could've done. He would of died if you got him out anyway, now come on!" Fox grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the body. They picked a tunnel opposite of the noise and ran in hoping they could lose the Lightfoots.  
  
They ran for a few minutes, completely unaware where they where going or where they'd end up. Krystal had no time to do the bead trick, so she could only randomly pick directions.  
  
"How many are there?" Fox asked.  
  
"I saw about five chase me into-" before she finished she started to slow down, then came to a complete stop.  
  
"What's wrong?!" Fox yelled. Krystal could hear the footsteps of more Lightfoots ahead of them. She panicked, and quickly choose another random tunnel. Fox had a question he wanted to ask her, but he knew this wasn't the time. Krystal had to acually run slower than normal just so Fox could keep up. They ran . . . not knowing what would happen . . . not knowing if they'd make it out alive. All hope seemed lost.  
  
It was only a few seconds more before Krystal slowed down.  
  
"Krytal, what are you doing?!"  
  
"I'm tired of running." she said.  
  
"What?!"  
  
Krystal turned around, "I am tired of running!" She clenched her fists. "I am tired of being pushed around by these puny little Lightfoots!" She paused for a moment. Fox began to worry for the Lightfoots where closing in on them. "I don't think I ever mentioned this but... sometimes, when I want a way to release my anger, I release it on my foes." Fox remembered the talk they had about handling anger. "My anger helps me become a better fighter. I don't know why I can have such heavy adrenilin rushes . . . but when I have them... I'm an unstoppable fighting machine. It's like... something in the past triggered me to become this raging monster when I get angry. I hate it so much! I hate it!!" Krystal's fists clenched even more. Fox wanted to say something but Krystal starting running toward the Lightfoot sounds before he could get anything out.  
  
"Krystal! Come back! There's a ton of them coming!" Krystal didn't respond. She kept running with her hands clenched the whole time. She reached around and grabbed her staff. She slowed down to a stop when she could see the incoming Lightfoots. She held the staff out in front of her for a few seconds. The approaching Lightfoots came to a stop a few feet in front of Krystal. She looked at them for awhile. They stood there . . . wondering what she was doing. Several thoughts were going through her head. Then a flash of Fox being stabbed by the Lightfoots appeared briefly. So much anger was passing through her. She hated it so much. She wanted to know why she was like this. Krystal extended her staff, causing all of the Lightfoots to dash towards her. The Lightfoots were almost trampling each other because of the lack of space in the tunnel. Krystal waited until the approaching Lightfoots were only a few yards away, then made her move. She turned the staff horizontally. The sharp end of the staff was almost touching the left side of the tunnel, where as the rounded side of the staff was almost touching the right side of the tunnel. She let out a loud yell . . . and sprinted forward.  
  
Krystal ran through the hoard of Lightfoots knocking them down, one after another, her staff ramming into the torso of everything in her way. Lightfoots were dropping like flies. When she reached the end of the hoard, she continued to run until she could find a nice open spot in the tunnel. When she found one, she stopped and turned to face the Lightfoots. Almost all of them were still lying on the ground from being rammed into. Fox dashed through the remaining Lightfoots toward Krytal, knocking the rest down. When Fox reached Krystal, he stopped and looked towards all the Lightfoots lying there in the tunnel. He then slowly turned his head to Krystal.  
  
"Krystal . . . are you . . . okay?" Fox asked. It took her a moment to answer.  
  
"No . . . I'm not." That's all she said. He could see her fists clentched. Fox never thought she could be like this . . . no one did. Thousands upon thousands of these random angry thoughts passed through Krystal's mind. She had never felt so angry. She didn't even know why she was angry. Fox was fine, tricky got away . . . unfortunately it wasn't looking very good for her and Fox. Fox looked over towards the Lightfoots. They were beginning to get up! Krystal looked at them with red in her eyes. So . . . much . . . anger. She did the only thing she could . . . 


	9. Part VIII: A Different Krystal

Part VIII  
  
A Different Krystal  
  
There must have been something... there must have been some reason... there were so many random images passing through, but she couldn't organize them into one complete thought. It was all just sudden flashes of things that made her angry. She was standing in the middle of it all... confused and angry. But why?  
  
There was a white flash, and she was suddenly back in the circular room with Fox and the several dozen angry Lightfoots. She looked at Fox, then at the Lightfoots. A few moments went by. Fox was beginning to worry. The Lightfoots were closing in on them, and the only weapon they had was Krystal's discharged staff. She gave it some deep thought, then acted.  
  
"Run!" she yelled.  
  
"What? To where?" Fox yelled back.  
  
"Anywhere but here! I don't care where! I just don't want any more killing!" 'Killing?' Fox thought. 'What is she talking about?' Krystal darted off in a random direction not knowing where it would take them. Instead of asking any questions, Fox just followed her. Where were they going? They were lost. They were surrounded. They were gonners...  
  
Just when all hope seemed gone with the light of day, Fox and Krystal both heard a very familar noise coming from one of the tunnels. They paused for a moment, looked at each other, then dashed into the tunnel from which the noise came. They ran into another fork shortly after. Again they waited for the same sound to guide them in the right direction (hopefully). After many times of listening for the same familar sound that both Fox and Krystal heard somewhere before, they began to see the light shining down one of the tunnels. They ran into the tunnel noticing the sudden upward slope. They were heading toward the surface! They continued to run down the long tunnel until finally... fresh air hit their bodies. Fox walked a few steps out of the tunnel, then knelt down at the grass. Grass had never smelt so fresh. The cool breeze hit both their sweating bodies causing a relieved and relaxing feeling that couldn't be discribed with words.  
  
Krystal was standing there, still unsure about what happened in the cave. She tried not to think of it, but instead be thankful that she was alive and able to feel the sun on her fur again. Fox bolted up from the grass.  
  
"I know what that sound is!" he said with an excited look across his face.  
  
"I think I do too." Krystal said with a smile.  
  
"FOX!!" a distant voice yelled.  
  
"Tricky!" yelled Fox. Tricky ran as fast as his little legs would let him toward Fox and Krystal. He reached them, then rested for air.  
  
"You guys made it out of that cave!" he yelled. Before Fox could respond, they all heard many footsteps coming from the tunnel. The Lightfoots were still following them! Fox paniced, Krystal grabbed her staff... but Tricky just laughed.  
  
"What could possibly be so funny?" Fox asked.  
  
"What do you think I was doing all this time I was gone?" he said. "Come hide over here!" He ran behind a large log. Fox and Krystal followed.  
  
"Was that you making all that noise?" Krystal asked.  
  
"No, I'm afraid not," Tricky answered. There was a brief silence.  
  
"Well then who was it?"  
  
"My mom," he said with a large smile.  
  
Then, dozens of Lightfoots ran out of the cave. They stopped at the entrance looking for which way Fox and Krystal might of went, unaware they were behind the large log next to them. But before the Lightfoots could think too much, a low, heavy rumbling quaked the ground. It started small, then grew increadibly large. The Lightfoots stumbled around almost loosing their balance. Only a few seconds later, a stampede of Earthwalkers came dashing around the corner, aiming toward the Lightfoots! In the very front was the Queen Earthwalker! The Earthwalkers rammed into the Lightfoots standing outside the entrace, causing them to fly back into the cave. The Earthwalkers then took a few steps backwords and went into a kneeling position.  
  
"On my mark!..." yelled the Queen. "GO!!" All the Earthwalkers in the front row came running foward and crashed into the wall of the cave entrance. The cave rumbled for a few moments then colapsed, sealing the entrance and the Lightfoots inside of it.   
  
"Comon' you guys!" yelled Tricky to Fox and Krystal. "Let's go see my mom!" Fox, Krystal and Tricky then walked over to see the Queen Earthwalker.  
  
"Those nasty Lightfoots won't bother you anymore," the Queen said in her elderly voice.  
  
"Thank you," began Fox. "I don't know what we would've done if you hadn't of showed up." Krystal approached the Queen and knelt down.  
  
"Oh no! There's no need for that dear!" the Earthwalker exclaimed. Krystal stood up and said thanks instead.  
  
"How is the King doing?" Krystal asked.  
  
"Oh not so well I'm afraid. It just keeps getting worse. He was moaning when I left, but I had to come help you."  
  
"We should leave right away then for the stone!" said Fox.  
  
"What stone? Oh you mean the Ancient Healing Stone?  
  
"Yes. Krystal told us about it and it could come in use for the King."  
  
"I understand. Do you still wish for Tricky to continue to keep you company?"  
  
"We owe our lives to Tricky. If it is not a problem with you, I ask if he can accompany us further on our quest to find this healing stone."  
  
"After all I am a member of the team now!" Tricky added.  
  
The Queen Earthwalker laughed, "of course you can go Tricky! Do becareful though."  
  
"I will mom..."  
  
Fox, Krystal and Tricky began walking to the exit of the Lightfoot village to continue their quest... together. 


	10. Part IX: Moon Mountain Madness

Part IX  
  
Moon Mountain Madness  
  
Fox, Krystal and Tricky said their goodbyes to the Earthwalkers that saved them, then resumed their journey to find the Anceint Healing Stone. They were on their way to Moon Mountain Pass, which Fox completely hated. Tricky wasn't fond of it either because of the gysers that shoot out green steam, and the unusual plant life there. Krystal had never been there. She had only heard about the stone from another source.  
  
"Krystal," Fox began, "I just wanted to tell you how happy I am that we both made it out of that cave alive." Krystal looked at him and smiled almost causing Fox to trip over himself.  
  
"Thank you Fox, that's very sweet of you. I'm happy too that we are both okay." She looked to her left. "And it's all thanks to Tricky for getting help." Tricky's face went red.  
  
"But Krystal..."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"What exactly... happened in the cave with all of those Lightfoots? I looked at you for a sec, and noticed something about you that was different, but only for a second." Krystal slowed her pace.  
  
"Oh well... honestly, I don't know. I'm not really sure what came over me."  
  
"But you mentioned killing. You said that you didn't want anymore killing. What did you mean? You do remember that right?" Krystal slowed down even more.  
  
"Well yes I remember saying it... but I don't remember why."  
  
"You told me you sometimes released your anger on your foes, with a really angry voice too! I was gettin' kinda worried."  
  
"Yeah I'm really sorry about that Fox. I have no idea what was happening in that cave."  
  
"Oh, you don't have to be sorry, I was just worried about you!" Krystal smiled at him again. Everytime Fox would almost freeze.  
  
"Yeah but I'd rather not talk about it. Talking about it just makes me mad."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Well like I said, I'm not really sure. Maybe I'll find out someday."  
  
"What are you guys talking about?" Tricky asked.  
  
"Oh it's nothing," Krystal said, hoping that Tricky would leave it at that.  
  
"Well alright, if your sure."  
  
"Hey Krystal," Fox began.  
  
"Yes Fox?"  
  
"I was wondering this for a while now but... do you think..." he hesitated.  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"Well uh..." 'Comon Fox just say it!' he thought to himself. 'It would be better than leaving her alone on this planet!'. "Well I was wondering if you were interested in... well... joining the Starfox Team." Krystal stopped walking. She turned and faced Fox. Fox was almost frozen! He could barely move.  
  
"Fox!" she yelled. "Do you mean it! Do you really want me to live with you on that big ship of yours, and be apart of the team?!"  
  
"Well, yeah! Nothing would make me happier!"  
  
"Oh Fox!!" Krystal jumped towards Fox and hugged him. Now Fox was completely frozen. She let go of him and saw he was bright red. She laughed then said, "I would love to join the team! But wait, do you think it's alright with everyone else?"  
  
Fox was in a daze. "Uh huh." He shook his head. "I mean yes of course! I'm sure no one will mind."  
  
"Oh thank you so much Fox!"  
  
"Your very welcome! I'm sure you will be a huge help on the team! Uh... we may have to get you a new outfit though."  
  
"What... why? What's wrong with what I have on?" Fox looked at her and laughed.  
  
"Well nothing's wrong with what you have on, but let's just say you just need more on than that."  
  
"Well alright that's fine."  
  
"Hey you guys I think were are almost to Moon Mountain Pass!" yelled Tricky. He was right. There were less and less trees, and the ground was getting much greyer and duller.  
  
"Do you know your way around here, Tricky?" asked Fox  
  
"No not really... I just knew how to get here."  
  
"How are we going to find our way around this place? Peppy has the map stored in his database. If only-" he was interrupted by his PDA beeping. "I think it's the team! I hope they're alright." He pushed some buttons on the PDA. There were a few beeps, then static. Fox pulled it to his ear to listen closer. He could faintly hear the sound of Peppy.  
  
"Fox. I'm not sure if this is reaching you or not, but if it is I just wanted you to know that we are alright."  
  
"Peppy! Can you hear me?" Peppy didn't respond, he just continued as if unable to hear Fox.  
  
"We were attacked by some of the remains of the Andross Army. I don't know what happened to you but we really could of used your help. The Great Fox has been pretty bruised, and is definitely going to need repairs. I strongly advise you to return to the Great Fox immediately to help defend against any further attacks. The ship can't take much more of this! We are also running very low on supplies, and may need to head to the nearest RZ when you get back. I hate to say this, and I know you hate hearing this..."  
  
"Let me guess," Fox groaned, "This is gonna cost us a lot of our reward money..."  
  
"But this is probably going to end up costing us a lot of money Fox. It may have to come from our pay from the Dinosaur Planet mission. Let's hope for the best. I'd hate for you to lose all that well earned money. Contact me ASAP whenever possible. Peppy out!" Fox only laughed.  
  
"Anything wrong?" Krystal asked, curious of his laughter.  
  
"Oh nothing, it's just... this is what always happens. We get our pay, then spend it all on repairs and supplies. It's kinda funny."  
  
"I'm sorry Fox."  
  
"Oh no don't worry about it! I knew this would happen in some way, shape or form, but I still helped that planet put itself back together. Just goes to show you that we aren't in it for the money. The money is vital though for repairs to the ship. I really did think we would get away from that mission flawlessly too... but it's fine. What would I spend the money on anyways?" He laughed again. "Yeah... leave it up to Andross to screw everything up. It's what he's best at! But enough about him. We should continue to look for this stone." Krystal looked at Fox very deeply. She admired his determination to find a way to make everything better, even if there was no money involved. She was very thankful that Fox was letting her join the team. She did wonder if everyone else would let her on though. She wondered if there was maybe a series of tests she was going to be put though. It didn't matter to her though, because she would do anything to be a part of the team. They began walking towards Moon Mountain Pass again.  
  
"So Fox," she started, "what exactly do you have to spend money on again?" She was really just looking for conversation, but she realized that talking about his damaged ship may have not been the best thing to bring up.  
  
"Well, when we get to the ship we'll go to the nearest RZ wherever that is-"  
  
"What's an RZ?"  
  
"A Re-supply Zone. It's where we get all our stuff for food and... well stuff."  
  
"What kind of food do you guys eat on board?"  
  
"Oh well ROB usually cooks... have you seen ROB?  
  
"I think I saw him for a couple minutes on board before. He's... the weird thing right?"  
  
Fox laughed, "yeah... he's the weird thing. Speaking of weird, where are we?" They all looked out into an empty desert of grey sand. "Huh... I don't remember it being this empty. I remember green gysers and weird plants."  
  
"Yeah me too," Tricky said, remembering the hot gysers that shot out from under him everytime he walked near one.  
  
"So... How exactly do we plan to find this stone without a map? And even if we had a map, I dought the location of this stone would be written on it!" Fox then got an idea. "What if that floating lizard guy knows anything about this stone? We should go back and ask him for any infomation he has and a map of Moon Mountain Pass."  
  
"Okay," Krystal said, "let's go back then."  
  
They all turned around and their jaws dropped. There was nothing behind them. It was all desert and dust. Nothing but hills of small grey sand dunes. It was too windy and dusty to see very far.  
  
"Oh no..." began Fox with a worried voice. "I have no idea where we are! If we try to go back we could get even more lost!" Fox started to panic. "Okay, okay... what should we do?"  
  
"Well I could use my staff to sort of... draw a line in the sand so we know that we are going straight." Fox looked at her for a moment.  
  
"I guess that could work." Krystal took her staff and extended it... but before she had a chance to bring it to the ground, she noticed the round end was glowing.  
  
"What's happening? My staff... it's almost trying to pull me in that direction!" The staff turned to the direction leading further into the desert.  
  
"But we could get lost if we go that way!"  
  
"Fox I think my staff is trying to tell me something, and I really think we should listen." Fox stood there for a moment and thought about it. They could get even more lost by going further into the desert. But then again they could still get lost trying to get back.  
  
"Okay let's follow your staff. I hope it knows what it's doing!" 


	11. Part X: Lost

Part X  
  
Lost  
  
The dust storm continued to grow worse and worse. Fox had never seen a dust storm of gray dust before. It really made it hard to find their way around. They could only depend on Krystal's staff to guide them in the right direction to some type of safety.  
  
"We need to get out of here before the storm gets any worse," Fox yelled, holding Tricky in his hands.  
  
"Let's keep going this direction," Krystal yelled back, still holding the staff. "I think I see something ahead. Fox looked up and opened his eyes for as long as he could, without taking in too much dust. He could see something too.  
  
"I can't tell what it is, but let's head there in case there is shelter of some sort!" They all went as fast as they could, which was reduced to a fraction of a crawl. The wind seemed to be blowing its hardest in the opposite direction they were trying to go. After a few minutes, they managed to walk the six feet to the object they saw before. As soon as the object came into plain view, the storm completely disappeared! They all turned around and saw that there was no dust at all. Fox could even see where they started from (where they started noticing less trees)!  
  
"Wha..." Fox paused for a minute. "Where did the storm go? And has that all we've gone so far?!" Fox set Tricky down.  
  
"Thanks Fox," he said.  
  
"No problem," he smiled. Krystal turned and looked where Fox was looking.  
  
"So wait, is that really where we started from?" She pointed over to some lone trees only about half a football field's length away.  
  
"Yeah," Fox replied, "that's where we were talking. I don't understand? It's like the storm was trying to keep us away from this building thing." He turned back around and looked upon the object. It was some type of strange building. Like an extremely small rectangular pyramid with a tall blue needle sticking out the top of it. The building didn't reach much higher than Fox's height! Fox noticed the small hole leading inside the pyramid. "So are we supposed to fit in that or something?!"  
  
"I could fit in it Fox," Tricky yelled, jumping up and down. "I could go in, tell you what's inside, and come back out!" Fox looked at him a smiled.  
  
"If you don't think it's too dangerous, Tricky."  
  
"Naw, I can handle it!" He ran up to the hole looking inside of it. He stood there for a minute to see if he could make anything out.  
  
"What's this?" Fox said as he noticed some strange writing on the wall. "Tricky, don't go in yet! We should figure out what this says first." Tricky, just about to enter the pyramid, ran over to Fox. "This writing on the wall. I wonder what it says. You know, I think it might be in Dinosaur since we are on Dinosaur Planet and all. We should ask Krystal if she can read this. It's probably im-" he was interrupted by screaming.  
  
"Fox!" Krystal yelled, standing over a ways to his right. "Fox help me!" Fox looked over to see Krystal standing alone out maybe 15 yards away. She was looking in some random direction with her hands out in front of her as if trying to find something. "Fox help! Where are you!" She sounded like she was in trouble, but Fox was standing right there watching her. Nothing was wrong with her... she was just standing out there alone...  
  
"Krystal what's wrong?"  
  
"Fox! Is that you? Please help me! I wondered off too far!" Fox was very confused. He started walking toward her, still asking what was wrong. Just as he was about to reach her, the dust storm kicked in again at full blast! Fox could barely see anything three feet in front of him. Fox jumped back toward the building as fast and as far as he could. The storm was gone! He could see Krystal again, still slowly walking in the wrong direction, still wondering where she was.  
  
"Fox Please!!" She yelled, almost crying.  
  
"Krystal stop moving! I can see you but you have to stop!" Krystal stopped where she was and fell to her knees. Fox moved toward her very slowly. As soon as the dust storm kicked in, he took a step back so it would disappear again. He was only a few feet away from her, but couldn't go any further without the dust storm kicking in. "Krystal!" he yelled as loud as he could, "I want you to stand up! Don't go anywhere, just stand up where you are!" She stood up and tried her best not to move. Fox could see tears running down her face. It pained him to see her this scared. "I want you to take out your staff!" She reached for her staff (which was holstered in the side of her cloth), and slowly attempted to pull it out. It was just about loose, when it fell out of her hands and onto the sand!  
  
"Fox I dropped it!"  
  
"It's okay Krystal I can see it! Bend down and put your hands in the sand." She did just that. "Now take your right hand and drag it across the ground to the right!" She did, and her hand bumped into the staff. She picked it up, and stoop up once more. "Your doing great! Now extend the staff, and point it outward." She extended the staff, and held it out away from her. "Good, now slowly turn and face my voice!" Krystal turned around toward Fox's direction very slowly. The end of the staff came closer and closer to Fox. When it was within his reach, he grabbed it. "Now hold on to it very tightly!" he yelled. After a few seconds, he pulled the staff toward him, causing both him and Krystal to fly in that direction. Krystal landed on top of Fox. Fox could only feel her shaking. He took her off of him and sat her up. "Krystal are you okay? Krystal calm down your alright." Krystal opened her eyes and saw Fox kneeling there smiling at her. She couldn't say anything, so she just hugged him instead.  
  
"Fox I don't know what happened... I ran off... too far and the... dust storm appeared again... and-"  
  
"Krystal it's okay. Your fine now." Tricky, still sitting by the writing, saw the two hugging and ran over to ask what was wrong.  
  
"Hey guys are you alright?" he asked. He started to walk toward the desert a little when Fox yelled, "Wait Tricky STOP!!"  
  
"What's wrong Fox?"  
  
"I don't know why, but if you go out too far, the dust storm comes in again... but only for whoever is out there. Only the person out there can see it."  
  
"Not only see it," Krystal added, "but feel it, hear it, even taste it!"  
  
"That doesn't make any sense..." Tricky said.  
  
"Just trust me, Tricky. It almost scared Krystal to death!" Fox told him. Krystal looked up at Fox and smiled.  
  
"I'm fine Fox," she said. "Thank you for helping me out of that storm. I thought I had lost sight of you and would never find you again. So much was happening I couldn't help but cry... but I'm fine now." Fox helped her on her feet. "But thank you Fox." She looked right into his eyes. Fox couldn't help but freeze every single time.  
  
He somehow managed to unfreeze himself and ask, "What were you doing out there anyways?"  
  
"I was trying to figure out what that is." She pointed to a figure not too far of a distance away. Fox took looked at it for a moment and realized what it was.  
  
"That looks exactly like the pyramid we are at!" Krystal pointed in another direction close to the first one. It was another pyramid! "Another one!" She pointed again in another direction not far from the last. "Three temples? There are three more out there? But what for?" Fox thought for a moment as he realized that there where four temples. One where they were at, another North of them, another East of them, and another North-East of them. "What could they all be for?" Fox remembered the writing. "Oh Krystal! I think Tricky and I found some sort of writing on the wall over here on the pyramid." Fox and Krystal walked over to the wall. Krystal took a good look at it. "Yes this is Dinosaur Language. I can read it to you if you want."  
  
"Sure Krystal."  
  
"Okay, it says:  
  
Nine Pyramids, nine Stones, nine lives, spent digging through dirt that doesn't exist  
  
Lost in a desert that extends no more than a Diiske can see  
  
Only one with nine lives can visit each pyramid's insides  
  
If the right is found last, then only one life shall remain  
  
But which is the right if eight others are wrong?  
  
Can one trust what is written on one that brings death?  
  
Does one know for sure that one brings death for certain?  
  
Only when one is surrounded by those that bring death is one safe"  
  
"Hmmm..." Fox thought to himself for a moment. "What is a diiske anyway?"  
  
"I think it's a big bug that used to be all over this Planet. They can't see very far so I think that's what it means."  
  
"Okay. But what does it mean by nine lives?" Fox thought for another minute.  
  
"As I was walking outward, I think I saw another temple behind that one," Krystal said, pointing to the North Temple.  
  
"Okay so there is another temple behind that one, and we know that there is probably nine temples." He put his had on his muzzle and thought for a minute. Tricky and Krystal both stood there watching. He finally moved. "I think we should head to that one," he said as he pointed to the North-East Temple. "Something tells me that that one is special somehow."  
  
"How do you mean, Fox?"  
  
"Well there is a temple there (North), there (North-East), and there (East), and of course here. That makes a square of four temples. If you say you saw one further from that one (North), then I bet there is one further from that one (East). Therefore, there must be another one beyond that one (North-East), and if this pattern of temples were to remain geometric there would have to be two more, one up and one to the right, of the middle one, thus making a giant square of 9 different pyramids. Just a hunch though..." Tricky and Krystal both had the same look across their faces. "Yeah that is kinda hard to explain... Okay uh... Krystal, can I borrow your staff?"  
  
"For how long?" she asked, followed by laughter. "I'm just joking! Here." She handed her staff to Fox, who extended it and began to draw a picture in the gray sand.  
  
X X X  
  
X X X  
  
O X X   
  
"Okay," Fox began. "The X's are where I think other temples are. The O is where we are at. I think that that temple (North-East) is the center. According to the writing, I think anyone who goes in the wrong temple will die. That's kinda why I think we should head for the center. We may find something interesting there."  
  
"Okay Fox, that sounds like a plan, but how do we get to that pyramid if the dust storm starts up as soon as we walk away from this temple?"  
  
"Well, hopefully the same way we made it to this temple. Try telling your staff to guide us to the center temple."  
  
"Fox," Tricky started, "how can she tell her staff to help us?"  
  
"Somehow I just know that she is able to do that. Maybe it's from all the time I spent with that staff. Somehow I know that that staff is very special. Not just because it can charge up and shoot laser beams, which was cool, but because... well just because."  
  
"I understand Fox... well actually I don't understand, but I believe you." Tricky smiled at Fox. Fox smiled back. They were actually starting to become real good buddies from their time together on all of these missions (well BOTH of the missions that occurred on Dinosaur Planet). Fox still remembers the first time he met Tricky. Tricky was more like a pest to Fox back then. Always wanting to play... always hungry... always, always, always! But now the two seem to be getting along pretty well.  
  
Fox handed Krystal her staff. She held it close to her and began to concentrate. A few seconds later, the end of the staff lit up bright blue, and Krystal's body was pulled toward the North-East temple.  
  
"Everyone hold on to me!" Krystal shouted. "I wouldn't want anyone getting lost in this strange dust." Fox picked up Tricky, who was getting very heavy, and walked as close as possible to Krystal. They slowly began to drift toward the temple, wondering when the strange dust would kick in. Almost half way there, the dust kicked in. Tricky was yelling something, but even Fox, who was carrying him, couldn't hear a word he was saying, nor could he see Krystal, who was only inches away from him. They had to always be touching so as not to lose each other. Not too long passed by, and they reached, what Fox thought to be, the center temple. The dust vanished almost instantly as always, revealing the temple only a few feet away. Fox set Tricky down and noticed writing on the wall of the temple. Krystal walked up to it. "This says the same as the other one did."  
  
"I think all nine temples say the same thing," Fox said.  
  
"So which one are we supposed to go into? I remember you saying the the wrong temple will kill us!"  
  
"But I'm almost positive that this is the right temple."  
  
"But Fox, we could be killed if we go in the wrong one! Why are you so sure this is the one? Just because it's in the middle doesn't always mean it's the special one."  
  
"Because the writing says that only when we are surrounded by death will we be safe! Look around us!" Krystal and Tricky looked around and saw a pyramid in every direction. "You see! We are surrounded by death! We are surrounded by the temples that kill you. So we are safe!"  
  
"But how do you know that those temples are the ones that kill you? We don't know if those are the ones that bring death for sure!"  
  
"But if we were at any other temple, we wouldn't be surrounded." Krystal thought about it for a long time.  
  
"I don't know Fox... I don't want anyone to die."  
  
"Trust me Krystal. I'm positive that I have this right."  
  
"I'll go in first, Fox," said Tricky.  
  
"No Tricky, you don't have to-"  
  
"It's OK Fox, I will go in first! I think your right about the temple thing, so there is nothing to worry about." Fox didn't like this at all. He thought Tricky was very brave and all for wanting to go in first, but... what if Fox was wrong. What if Tricky died some horrible death right in front of Fox and Krystal. Fox would never forgive himself. Tricky went up to the small entrance to the temple and looked inside. He couldn't see anything, so he started to go in. Fox and Krystal watched, as Tricky disappeared from their sight... 


End file.
